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Coordinates: 37°50′31″N 122°06′16″W / 37.842°N 122.1045°W / 37.842; -122.1045
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For information on all Saint Mary's College of California sports, see Saint Mary's Gaels
Saint Mary's Gaels football
First season1892
Last season2003
StadiumSaint Mary's Stadium
Field surfaceNatural grass
LocationMoraga, California
NCAA divisionDivision I-AA (now FCS)
(1993– 2003)
ConferenceIndependent
Past conferencesIndependent (1892–1924)
Far Western (1925–1928)
Independent (1929–1950)
College Division Independent (1970–1979)
Division II Independent (1980–1992)
All-time record380–295–22 (.561)
Bowl record1–2 (.333)
Conference titles4 (FWC)
RivalriesSanta Clara (Little Big Game)
Oregon (Governors' Trophy Game)
Consensus All-Americans2 (1927, 1945)
ColorsNavy, red, and silver[1]
     

The Saint Mary's Gaels football program was the intercollegiate American football team for Saint Mary's College of California in Moraga, California.

History

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Founding and early years

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The school's first football team was fielded in 1892,[2] and was initially dropped in 1899 after going 7–6 in that span. The football program resumed again in 1915. In 1920 came one of the worst defeats in college football history, an 18-touchdown, 127–0 defeat from neighboring Cal. The Gaels gained only 16 yards of offense the entire game. This loss drove St. Mary's to turn the program around by hiring Knute Rockne's protege, Slip Madigan, who helped SMC win four consecutive conference championships from 1925 to 1928.

Galloping Gaels era

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By 1927, Saint Mary's developed into one of the strongest football programs on the West Coast. They defeated USC, UCLA, Cal, and Stanford. The Stanford team they defeated in 1927 went on to play in the Rose Bowl, as did the USC team they defeated in 1931. Slip also led the Gaels to the program's only two undefeated seasons in 1926, at 9–0–1, and 1929, at 8–0–1. Although the school's enrollment seldom exceeded 500, the 'Galloping Gaels' became a nationally known football power.

The famously red-clad jersey-ed 'Galloping Gaels', were known for their flashy style that reflected the personality of their flamboyant coach. In the most notable win in program history, Saint Mary's traveled to New York City in 1930 to play Fordham in front of 65,000 at New York City's famed Polo Grounds. Madigan traveled to New York for the game with 150 fans on a train that was labeled "The World's Longest Bar." To stir up publicity for the game, he then threw a party the night before the game and invited sportswriters and celebrities. Babe Ruth and New York mayor Jimmy Walker attended the party. Fordham was a heavy favorite, as the Rams had won 16 straight games going back to 1928. They featured the first version of a defense known as the "Seven Blocks of Granite," a formidable unit that later would include Vince Lombardi. Saint Mary's recovered from a 12–0 halftime deficit to win, 20–12.

The Gaels had a couple of shots at a national championship in the 1930s. A one-point loss to Cal in SMC’s opener in 1930 probably cost the school the No. 1 spot. In 1934, the Gaels beat Fordham and Cal, but were upset by Nevada, 9–7, and lost to UCLA, 6–0, and another national title had slipped away.[3] The Gaels won the Cotton Bowl in January 1939 and lost in the Sugar Bowl in January 1946. That 1945 team won its first seven games and was ranked seventh in the AP poll entering the bowl game. They also lost in the 1946 Oil Bowl the following year. Many home games of this era were played to sold-out crowds at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco.[3]

Program revival

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The football program was dropped after the 1950 season,[4][5] first revived as a club sport, and then returned to sanctioned varsity status in 1970 (College Division, later Division III),[6] and moved up to Division II in 1980.[3]

Modern Division I era and end of program

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In order to keep its overall athletics program at Division I, football was required to cease or move up to Division I-AA by 1993. (Rival Santa Clara discontinued football after 1992.) The team competed in NCAA Division I-AA as an independent from 1993 through 2003.[6]

By 1998, Saint Mary's awarded 14 scholarships in football (vastly under the FCS limit of 63), with a budget of almost $800,000.[7]

However, after eleven seasons as a Division I-AA independent, Saint Mary's ended its football program on March 3, 2004, citing budgetary reasons.[8] The announcement came a week after the institution had declared intent to join the Great West Football Conference, rendering SMC as the 11th California university to drop football since 1951.[9]

Conference affiliation

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• 1892-1899: Independent

• 1915-1924: Independent

• 1925-1928: Far Western Conference

• 1929-1950: Independent

• 1970-1979: College Division-Division III Independent

• 1980-1992: Division II Independent

• 1993-2003: Division I-AA Independent

Conference championships

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St. Mary's won four consecutive conference championships in a row in their only time associated in an athletic conference. The Gaels have been an independent all other years of existence.

Year Conference Coach Overall Record Conference Record
1925 Far Western Slip Madigan 8-2 3–0
1926 Far Western Slip Madigan 9–0–1 4–0
1927 Far Western Slip Madigan 7–2–1 3–0
1928 Far Western Slip Madigan 5–4 2–0

Bowl games

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Season Bowls City Opponent Result
1938 Cotton Dallas Texas Tech W 20–13
1945 Sugar New Orleans Oklahoma A&M L 13–33
1946     Oil     Houston Georgia Tech L 19–41

Head coaches

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Slip Madigan and James Phelan are the only coaches that have led the 'Galloping Gaels' to bowl games.

Coach Seasons Record Pct. Bowl Record
Slip Madigan 1921–1939 117–45–12 .707 1–0
Red Strader 1940–1941 10–7 .588
James Phelan 1942–1947 47–25–1 .490 0–2
Joe Verducci 1948–1949 7–12–1 .375
Joe Ruetz 1950 2–7–1 .250

Rivalries

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Oregon

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Main article: Governors' Trophy Game

Oregon and Saint Mary's College competed in an annual Thanksgiving Day classic between 1929 and 1935, played at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park.[10] The victors were awarded The Governors' Perpetual Trophy jointly by the governors of the states of California and Oregon.[11] The Gaels hold a 7–3 lead in the series and final possession of the trophy. The rivalry is unlikely to be contested again, as Saint Mary's discontinued football in 1951 due to the national emergency resulting from the Korean War, and reinstated its program in 1970, only to discontinue it again after the 2003 football season.[12]

College Football Hall of Fame

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Name Years Position Inducted Ref
Larry Bettencourt 1924-1927 C / DE 1973 [13]
James Phelan 1942-1947 Head Coach 1973 [14]
Slip Madigan 1921-1939 Head Coach 1974 [15]
Herman Wedemeyer 1943, 1945-1947 HB 1979 [16]

Pro Football Hall of Fame

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Inducted Player POS Seasons at St. Mary's Ref.
1987 John Henry Johnson HB/ FB 1949-1950 [17]

National Award Winners

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Sean Laird (1997)

All Americans

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Saint Mary's has 2 Consensus All-Americans and 1 Unanimous All-American (Herman Wedemeyer, HB- 1945)

St. Mary’s Gaels All-Americans
Player Position Season Poll Team Notes
Red Strader FB 1924 3rd Team
Larry Bettencourt C 1925 NB 1st Team College Football Hall of Fame member
1926 3rd Team
1927 Consensus 1st Team
Underhill DE 1926 AP 2nd Team
Malcolm Franklin DE 1928 AP 1st Team
UP 2nd Team
George Ackerman T 1929 AP 1st Team
UP 2nd Team
Fred "Stud" Stennett HB 1929 UP 2nd Team
1930 AP 3rd Team
Dick Boyle HB 1929 3rd Team
Harry Ebding DE 1930 AP 3rd Team/ 2nd Team
Bud Toscani HB 1931 2nd Team
Bill Fisher G 1931 AP 1st Team
UP 1st Team
Angelo Brovelli FB 1932 UP 3rd Team
NEA 3rd Team
FWAA 1st Team
Mike Steponovich G 1932 AP 3rd Team
William "Bill" Beasley QB 1932 3rd Team
Ed Gilbert G 1933 AP 2nd Team
Fred Conrinus DE 1933 UP 3rd Team
John Yezerski DT 1933 NEA 1st Team
Carl Jorgensen DT 1933 1st Team
UP 2nd Team/3rd Team
George Wilson HB 1933 AP 2nd Team
UP 3rd Team
Marty Kordick G 1935 NEA 2nd Team
Herman Wedemeyer HB 1945 Consensus (Unanimous All American[note 1]) 1st Team College Football Hall of Fame
1946 AP 2nd Team
UP

Notable players

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Notes

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  1. ^ AAB; AFCA; AP-1; COL-1; FWAA-1; INS-1; LK; SN; UP-1; CNS-1; CP-1; NL; OF-1; WC-1

References

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  1. ^ "Gaels Color Guide". Saint Mary’s College of California Style Guide (PDF). January 10, 2018. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
  2. ^ "Saint Mary's Historical Data". College Football Data Warehouse. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  3. ^ a b c Springer, Steve (October 12, 1985). "Those Gaels, what tales: for St. Mary's, football glory is just a memory". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 1, 2018.
  4. ^ "Gaels abandon gridiron sport". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. January 6, 1951. p. 7.
  5. ^ "Gaels bow out of grid picture". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. January 7, 1951. p. 9.
  6. ^ a b Litsky, Frank (September 24, 1995). "Emotion: St. Mary's has it and Columbia does not". New York Times.
  7. ^ "Saint Mary's vows to keep football". San Luis Obispo Telegram-Tribune. October 17, 1998. pp. C6.
  8. ^ Burrell, Jackie, and Thompson, Marcus II (March 4, 2004). "Game over; St. Mary's dissolves football program". Contra Costa Times. Archived from the original on August 12, 2004. Retrieved April 18, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  9. ^ Milne, Brian (March 4, 2004). "Great West Loses Team: St. Mary's Cites Financial Woes in Dropping Program". The Tribune (San Luis Obispo, CA). pp. C1.
  10. ^ "Gaels Hold Edge Over Webfoots in Games Played". The Eugene Guard. Eugene, Oregon. November 24, 1935. Retrieved November 28, 2022. The series, which was inaugurated in 1929 as an annual Thanksgiving day classic, is played in San Francisco. The governors of the states of Oregon and California donated a "Governor's [sic] Trophy,", which is awarded each year to the winning team.
  11. ^ "St. Mary's Wins New Governors' Trophy". Corvallis Gazette–Times. Corvallis, Oregon. November 28, 1932. Retrieved November 28, 2022.
  12. ^ "St. Mary's Quits Football". Oakland Tribune. January 5, 1951. pp. 32–33.
  13. ^ "Larry Bettencourt". footballfoundation.org. National Football Foundation. Archived from the original on April 14, 2020. Retrieved June 6, 2023.
  14. ^ "Jim Phelan (1973) - Hall of Fame".
  15. ^ "Slip Madigan". footballfoundation.org. National Football Foundation. Archived from the original on June 7, 2023. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
  16. ^ "Herman Wedemeyer". footballfoundation.org. National Football Foundation. Archived from the original on June 7, 2023. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
  17. ^ "John Henry Johnson". www.profootballhof.com. Archived from the original on October 30, 2015. Retrieved June 6, 2023.

37°50′31″N 122°06′16″W / 37.842°N 122.1045°W / 37.842; -122.1045

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